[randalllewis]

Sadly, my new HP Pavilion e9280 is heading back to HP. It ran fine for over a week, but in the last few days it has repeatedly refused to go past the boot screen on cold start ups and has frozen solid twice. I haven't seen the BSOD's that other folks have reported in e9xxx units with the Pegatron motherboards, so perhaps the BIOS update HP released last month addressed that.

If I hadn't been aware of the types of issues the other HP units with the Pegatron board have had, I might have just continued to put up with the e9280 and written off the glitches as just typical computer stuff. But because I was aware and because my unit was within the 21 day return window, back it went.

I have done a search on the HP forums and no one has complained of issues with the e9250 or other units that use the MSI motherboard rather than the Pegatron that was in e91xx units and in the e9280 and 90. There doesn't seem to be much debate on the forums that it is the motherboard that is at issue. The BIOS update was probably an interim step to fix the problem, and it may have helped. It seems though that something else is at hand. Ordering an e9280 now gives you a build date of a few weeks out which may indicate new components are on order.

I have to say that I am disappointed in HP but have to add that they continue to treat me well. When I called to send the e9280 back, I got no hassles, no arguments, no check with tech support first, nothing like that. I told them what the problems were and that the unit appeared to have the same issues as other e9xxx units. They expressed regret and processed my return authorization.

It was only after that step was completed, that I told the rep that I wanted to order a new unit- the e9250, which can be configured to almost the exact specs of my e9280. A slightly slower i7 processor and 1Gb less memory and a smaller power supply are the only differences. The e9280 was originally a bit less expensive, but the savings aren't worth the hassle.

[randalllewis]

Sadly, my new HP Pavilion e9280 is heading back to HP. It ran fine for over a week, but in the last few days it has repeatedly refused to go past the boot screen on cold start ups and has frozen solid twice. I haven't seen the BSOD's that other folks have reported in e9xxx units with the Pegatron motherboards, so perhaps the BIOS update HP released last month addressed that.

If I hadn't been aware of the types of issues the other HP units with the Pegatron board have had, I might have just continued to put up with the e9280 and written off the glitches as just typical computer stuff. But because I was aware and because my unit was within the 21 day return window, back it went.

I have done a search on the HP forums and no one has complained of issues with the e9250 or other units that use the MSI motherboard rather than the Pegatron that was in e91xx units and in the e9280 and 90. There doesn't seem to be much debate on the forums that it is the motherboard that is at issue. The BIOS update was probably an interim step to fix the problem, and it may have helped. It seems though that something else is at hand. Ordering an e9280 now gives you a build date of a few weeks out which may indicate new components are on order.

I have to say that I am disappointed in HP but have to add that they continue to treat me well. When I called to send the e9280 back, I got no hassles, no arguments, no check with tech support first, nothing like that. I told them what the problems were and that the unit appeared to have the same issues as other e9xxx units. They expressed regret and processed my return authorization.

It was only after that step was completed, that I told the rep that I wanted to order a new unit- the e9250, which can be configured to almost the exact specs of my e9280. A slightly slower i7 processor and 1Gb less memory and a smaller power supply are the only differences. The e9280 was originally a bit less expensive, but the savings aren't worth the hassle.

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

Anything preventing you from building your own?

Otherwise I'm pretty much at a loss. HP desktops aren't too bad, I think. Wouldn't want to buy a Dell, unless they've changed their service warranty.

[randalllewis]

Anything preventing you from building your own?

Mostly my skill set. I have thought about it over the years, but....And for a while now I will need to live with my HP e9250 because my loving wife isn't happy with all the computer buying and returning I've done this year.

Otherwise I'm pretty much at a loss. HP desktops aren't too bad, I think. Wouldn't want to buy a Dell, unless they've changed their service warranty.

I have owned lots of HP stuff over the years and have been happy with it. It seems in this case they became aware that a certain percentage of their higher end units with Pegatron motherboards had a serious problem. They tried to address it with a BIOS update, and from my experience, this may have reduced, but did not eliminate the problem. I can certainly understand why they took that approach. HP service plans are usually one year, but the unit I returned came with a two year plan included. My replacement unit came with a one year warranty to which I added a second year at extra cost. This is for my piece of mind and also as a signal to my wife (see above) that I intend to keep this unit at least that long.

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

Yea, actually HP are pretty good in that aspect of aftersales service. I was impressed that their warranty lets you add a GPU and RAM on your own; most companies will have your warranty voided for that!

[randalllewis]

This update comes via my HP e9250t which has replaced the malfunctioning e9280t. It is too early to tell if there will be issues because the 80 didn't start malfunctioning for about two weeks. I suspect there won't be similar problems because the 50 uses the MSI Indio motherboard rather than the Pegatron model that is the consistent element in all of HP's recently troubled Pavilions.

I was pleased I was able to configure the 50 to almost identically match the specs of the 80 I had customized. The biggest difference is in the size of the power supply. The 80 had a 420 watt unit and the 50 has a more standard for HP 350. Maybe I shouldn't assume, but I am guessing the major reason for this change is that the 80's Bloomfield i7 processor required more juice than the 50's Lynnfield i7 processor.

One other change that I didn't expect but really appreciate: the e9250 is the first desktop computer I've ever owned that doesn't have PS2 ports. Instead, there are 6 USB 2.0 ports on the rear of the unit (and another 3 on the front). I've bumped against the standard 4 rear USBs several times in the past, and because I use a wireless desktop, this change leaves we with future peripheral expansion ability.

I also have to say that HP's speed in fixing my problem was impressive. I called on Sunday, November 8 to return my 80 and then order the 50. The 50 arrived at my home on Thursday, November 12. That was a nice turn around for a CTO unit. Now, just let it keep on working.......